Galaxy: Quantum Computing Poses Real Threat to Bitcoin but Not Urgent Crisis, Approximately 7 Million BTC in Long-Term Exposure State

Gate News Report, March 19 — Galaxy Digital Research Director Alex Thorn stated that the threat of quantum computing to Bitcoin is real, but it currently does not pose an imminent crisis. Investors should not mistake this long-term technological challenge as an immediate reason to avoid Bitcoin. Thorn pointed out that the current risk is limited to specific addresses with exposed public keys on the blockchain, including reused addresses, addresses held by some custodians, and assets in older address formats. Analysis by security firm Project Eleven shows that approximately 70 million BTC (worth about $470 billion at recent prices) are in this “long-term exposed” state, but remain secure under current quantum computing capabilities. In terms of countermeasures, developers have advanced several solutions, including introducing new address types based on post-quantum cryptography, implementing a “hourglass” mechanism to restrict spending permissions for permanently exposed public key addresses, and fundamentally reducing the phased upgrade path for broadcasting public keys in transactions.